Promotions - Choice's Outstanding Academic Titles 2019 - Social & Behavioral Sciences — Political Science — Law & Society

O'Quinn (Univ. of Guelph) provides a major service to the study of Europe's complex relationship with the early modern west Asia region. With specific insights drawn from his specialization in English studies, O'Quinn continues his earlier analysis of British imperial culture to identify complex interactions between European thinkers and the Ottoman Empire through various cultural production formats. Based on careful engagements that capture subtle shifts in representations of the "East" in the European mediascape, Quinn's conclusions about the origins of modern Europe benefit the reader. Drawn from deep analysis through eight chapters, this study highlights the critical role references to the Ottoman world played in shaping early modern European identity and political institutions. The specific focus on mediation, translation, hospitality, and sociability as they manifest in various forms of cultural expression in Europe further accentuates the point that the roots of European modernity are visible in how the media depicts the Ottoman Empire. By upsetting normative accounts of "orientalist" literary and visual depictions of the Ottoman Empire, this crucial study engages important questions about intercultural mediation that have long-term political consequences.Summing Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above.

"A land without a people for a people without a land" was a common refrain surrounding the creation of Israel, ignoring the existence of Palestinians. More recently, politicians have claimed that Palestine and the Palestinian people are recent inventions, in contrast to the long-standing history of Israel. Masalha (Univ. of London, UK) illuminates the errors of these views by providing an accessible analysis of 4,000 years of Palestinian history. By going back to the Bronze Age and documenting how various eras recognized a specific territory by variations of the name Palestine, he provides a history based on archaeological and historical records rather than biblical narratives. As he moves into the present, Masalha demonstrates the importance of names and language in his analysis of how Zionist settlers and Israeli leaders strove to erase Palestinian connections to the land by renaming towns, cities, and landmarks (in addition to removing the people themselves) while reinventing themselves with a new language (modern Hebrew) and new names for themselves. This book is an essential component for understanding past and present. Rather than imposing history on Palestine, Masalha allows Palestine to speak for itself.Summing Up: Essential. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty.

Hathaway (Ohio State Univ.) has produced the first comprehensive study of the Ottoman office of the chief harem eunuch and the East African eunuchs who normally held this important position. The work opens with a useful introduction to African eunuchs prior to the Ottoman period and a general discussion of eunuchs in the Ottoman palace. Starting with Habeshi Mehmed Agha's appointment as chief harem eunuch by Murad III and his subsequent control over the pious foundations of Mecca and Medina, Hathaway details the struggle for power and factionalism within the palace between the chief harem eunuch and his counterpart in the Third Court (the sultan's private chambers), the chief threshold eunuch. The former often in combination with the sultan's mother or favorite concubine wielded considerable power, ousting grand viziers and even placing sultans on the throne. This influence briefly waned during the Koprulu period, but continued until the mid-18th century. Filled with lively eunuch biographies and analyses of their involvement in Egypt and Ottoman intellectual and religious life as well as of their ultimate loss of influence, this work is both a great scholarly feat and a compelling read.Summing Up: Essential. All academic levels.

Tibble (Royal Holloway, Univ. of London, UK), makes use of research of the past few decades to support his claim that climate change and mass migration may have been among the causes of the Crusades. In so doing he diverges from the traditional position, which is that the cause was culture clash, Christian versus Muslim. Tibble divides the book into three parts--"Crusading Warfare," "Crusading Armies," and "Crusading Enemies"--and includes throughout plates, maps, and plans. Drawing on archaeological research along with documentary evidence (Islamic and Western), the author looks at the composition and the tactics of the armies involved and shows how climate change may have made life so difficult for the various nomadic groups in the region that they became extremely aggressive. Tibble's premise is certainly novel for this field of study, but it should be given a fair shake. The reasons for the Crusades are complex--certainly an admixture of religion and politics. Now Tibble takes a new approach, one that adds to prior research and may well influence subsequent research. This book is a must read for medievalists.Summing Up: Essential. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty.